The Meaning of Javanese Script on the Purwomartani Toll Gate
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - There is an ornament that catches the eye when you pass through the Solo-Yogyakarta main road, specifically at the Purwomartani Toll Gate.
The toll gate, which is part of the Solo-Yogyakarta-NYIA Kulonprogo toll road, has a distinctive appearance in the form of Javanese script or Hanacaraka installed above the toll gate.
The Hanacaraka ornament is placed right next to the words “Gerbang Tol Purwomartani”. The meaning of the Javanese script is Purwomartani.
Logos of the Ministry of Public Works (PU), the Nusantara Future Investment Management Agency (BPI Danantara), and PT Jasa Marga (Persero) Tbk as the Toll Road Business Entity (BUJT) for the Solo-Yogyakarta-NYIA Kulonprogo toll road are also installed on its sides.
“So we are indeed creating culture. Javanese culture will be more embedded in our toll road sections. So Javanese writings will become an icon at the toll gate,” said Yhanni to Kompas.com on Tuesday (10/03/2026).
However, not arbitrarily, PT Jasamarga Jogja Solo has of course coordinated with the Yogyakarta Special Region Government regarding the installation of the Hanacaraka ornament on this new infrastructure.
“So it is hoped that the toll gates that exist will indeed have enough local flavour, we can highlight it more,” she said.
Quoting the Sleman Regency website, administratively, Purwomartani Village is one of the areas in the Kalasan Sub-District, Sleman Regency.
The history of the formation of this area is related to village government arrangement policies in the early days of independence.
The formation of the village refers to the 1946 Special Region of Yogyakarta Regional Government Decree, which was then strengthened by Decree Number 5 of 1948 on changes to village areas.
The merger of the areas was carried out to reorganise village governance to be more effective.
The name Purwomartani itself is related to the conditions of the area in the past. Before becoming a settlement area as it is now, this region was known to have a forest area called “Wono Martani”.
The majority of the population at that time were also farmers who depended on agricultural land around that forest area.
The naming also coincides with the position of the area which occupies the first order in the area code in the Kalasan Sub-District.
Over time, Purwomartani has developed into a fairly strategic area in Sleman, especially after the construction of the toll road that passes through the area.